winninguglyin83

Pitcher B is Colon. Pitcher A is Garland. Gimme ... Bartolo that didn't take long

That's why KW gets paid the big bucks.

Sometimes you have to look at more than stax. Frank is obviously a Sox icon, the best offensive player in the history of the team. In the old days, you'd want him in a Sox uniform forever. But the old ways no longer work, not with free agency and payroll disparities. Sox have to put together a complete team within the budget JR presents. And Frank is no longer a good fit. He causes disruptions in the clubhouse. He is incredibly streaky, certain to lapse into two or three lengthy funks every season. He bristles at playing first base and then starts to hit when he goes out there. Defensively, though, you can't afford to have him out there. He pouts when he doesn't hit third. He is a station to station runner who clogs up the bases in the middle of the order. He refuses to slide and runs into too many avoidable outs. It's time to turn this team over to some younger and hungrier players. Not that he will actually leave. He'll be back. For the second consecutive season, no other team will offer him a contract, which tells you all you need to know about how much other teams value what The Big Hurt has to offer.

Park and Hampton are two of the worst deals in baseball, other than the ridiculous contracts the Tigers gave Easley, Higginson and Dmitri Young.

if Pettitte goes anywhere, it will be Houston. That's where he is from. not sure if they will spend the bucks, but he is allegedly amenable to a creative deal. That team needs to restructure. The Biggio/Bagwell/Hidalgo/Berkman approach has not worked I look for them to get rid of one of those hitters and spend on pitching. Can't see Pettitte come to the Sox. No reason for him to do that other than money and we're not going to overpay for him.

I fear we're all fantasizing here because none of the Chicago or Minneapolis papers have even floated TK's name -- and you KNOW it would leak out somewhere if it was even a remote possibility. Also heard that Terry Francona is a possible with Boston. What, they're not racing to hire Jerry Manuel?

in an old school world, I'd keep Maggs in a Sox uni forever. But in today's payroll dictated world, at $14 million, he's become a luxury the Sox cannot afford. I'm convinced that when they gave him the deal, the plan was to move him this season to make room for Borchard. That Plan has been pitched. But at $14 million Maggs is trade bait. Paulie, too.

aren't we lucky? more home runs. and more DPs and pop outs to short right field.

if he leaves, I hope we really do have a Plan B. Not realistic to believe Loaiza will be as strong next year. Buehrle and Garland could improve. Schoeneweis will be better than what we had as a No. 5 in 2003. But we need somebody to steady to replace Bartolo's 200-plus innings. And it ain't Danny Wright.

Alex Fernandez was awfully good, awfully quick So was Black Jack. As for Bartolo saying he doesn't want to pitch here or he likes it there, this is what I think: It's all negotiating. I'm convinced the Players association tells guys to say they want to stay where they are. It's good PR. Players know the fans think they are greedy. So they say they want to stay where they're at to keep some hometown fans somewhat happy. As for saying they don't want to play here or there, it's the perfect way to get a team (like the Yankees or Red Sox) to up the ante. That's what I think. Durham said he wanted to stay. Ventura said he liked the Sox. Charles Johnson said he enjoyed Chicago. Alex Fernandez said he wanted to stay. On and on and on. It's all PR. None of us know what is going on behind the scene. But the Players Association pressures these guys NOT to take less money to stay where they are because that's how they keep driving up the salaries. That will be more true than EVER this year because the free-agent market was soft last year. And I read a story last week that indicated the Players Association is going to file another collusion charge if it remains soft this year. That's the way the game is played, folks.

Not only is Frank not going to get more money, he's not going to get it guaranteed for three more years. That's why he'll be back -- in 2005, too. We need a manager who will kick him in the butt -- and not back down.

two reasons: 1. He is scheduled to make 14 million next year. If the Sox budget is going to be, say, $60 million, it's not prudent to invest nearly 25 percent of your payroll in one guy. 2. He'll be a free agent after next season. We either have to re-sign him for a reasonable amount, deal him or risk getting little more than a draft pick for him if he walks. That's why a decision has to be made on Maggs. Most sensible Sox fans like him and appreciate his contributions. But budgets are budgets.

i hope that is true. I fear that it isn't I've also heard the rumor that TK is the guy the Red Sox have targeted. Considering how hard he worked for the Twins last season as an advance scout, I question whether he would manage a team that is one of Minnesota's top rivals. But I'd vote yes on TK

i like Flash and he did good work for the Sox. But at his age, with his injury record and our budget, no way he is worth $5 million per for two years. If Piniella can talk Tampa into paying that, more power to him.

I like Gammons. He's heavy on BoSox-Yankees info, but that's because he used to be the beat writer for the Boston Globe and has a tone of sources in the AL and on the East Coast. He's wrong sometimes, but so are Mortensen, Aldridge, Clayton, Bucher and all the others that ESPN uses. That said, I prefer Tim Kurkjian over Gammons. But I'll take Gammons over Stark. Why? Kurkjian is more cautious than Gammons and doesn't throw a bunch of rumors into the mix. Plus, he used to work in Baltimore and Dallas so he's got a more balanced look at the AL. Stark tries too hard to be cute. And he's a Philly guy. Weak on the AL, stronger on the NL. Just my opinion. I missed Gammons' comments about Colon. When and where did he make them?

With Anderson, Sweeney, Valido and Nanita, it appears the Sox have some decent position player prospects. What we need are some pitchers from the 2000, 2001 and 2002 drafts to deliver. Hurry spring training.com

1. Magglio would be a good fit with the yankees. They badly need a right fielder (and a center fielder as well). 2. Johnson is a very good player, but there are three major problems with him. A. he is frequently hurt, usually with hand or wrist problems; B) he doesn't have a lot of power for a corner infielder and C) he's not in great shape and looks like a guy who will put on weight easily. That said, he is a good fielder, good hitter and a guy with great command of the strike zone. Not against going after him, but I AM against overvaluing him. Soriano would be a great get for the Sox. Last year some people thought he was the best player in the league, nearly a 40-40 man. He plays in New York, sucked in the post-season and now it's cool to dog him. I'd love to see the Sox get him. He'd probably have to move to the outfield eventually, but the guy has the ability to be a great offensive player. 3. i'd stay away from Weaver. He might have a good arm, but he's a head whom the Tigers couldn't wait to dump even though they have NO pitchers.

Didn't Phil Rogers speculate that it will be Gaston as manager and Molitor as the third base coach today? that sounds OK to me.

Baseball America printed the names of the six-year minor-league free agents from every team. these are the minor leaguers in the Sox system that anybody else can sign CHICAGO WHITE SOX (19) Pitchers: Brian Cooper, Clay Eason, Rolando Garza, Tom Jacquez, Ryan Kohlmeier. Catchers: Jon Aceves, Carlos Maldonado, Steve Morales. Infielders: Gabe Alvarez, Jorge Nunez, Juan Piniella, Danny Sandoval, Chris Saunders. Outfielders: Chad Durham, Jon Hamilton, Scott Morgan, Nate Murphy, Mario Valenzuela, Eric Welsh. My guess is that Kohlmeier, Durham and Valenzuela will be the first three gone. Thoughts?

Bring back Mike Sirotka. I'll never forgive Kenny Williams for that insulting trade. Mike Sirotka gave his shoulder to the Sox in 2000 and his reward was getting dumped for The Krispy Kreme Kid. enjoyed Wells taking a seat last night.

Pudge Fisk. Just kidding. I'm going with Ozzie if the Fish win the world series, cito if the Fish flop in New York.

second base Willie Harris shortstop David Eckstein center field Aaron Rowand

Ozzie sounds unlikely. colon sounds unlikely. and Tejada is flat-out ridiculous

the most interesting thing i saw was the comment from alomar about the clubhouse. It's pretty obvious that the Sox need somebody who will take on Frank, something JM rarely did successfully. I'm for the guy ready, willing and able to do that.

no on Singleton rather see Rowand or Harris get a legit chance There is a reason the Orioles and As tired of him after one season. He'a solid, but not great center fielder. He rarely walks. And he's only an average hitter. we can do better -- for less money